NBA First Scorer Props – February 1

First Scorer Props February 1 - NBA First Scorer Props - First Scorer Bets - Come tail along with these gems today with usSome people like to sweat out a bet for 48 hard minutes – others like immediate satisfaction. Count us as being in the latter, which is why we like to get down with NBA first scorer props. And we’ve decided to pass that knowledge on to you with our first scorer bets for February 1. Go here for NBA Championship odds.

Of course, there are plenty out there taking blind guesses at this stuff. It’s easy to pick the most popular player or look at what happened in the last game. However, we spent the time pouring through the analytics to make sure that we give you the best odds to stay in the green on these first scorer props for February 1.

Come check out what we have cooked up for this slate of games.

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NBA First Scorer Props – February 1

Washington Wizards vs. Minnesota Timberwolves

Tipoff – 8:00 pm EST
Target Center – Minneapolis, MN
Broadcast – NBA TV 

The Wizards, particularly on the road, have fallen into must-fade territory. They are scoring first just 40.4% of the time, which puts them 28th in the NBA. Their numbers on the tip are a bit better, but they still rank in the bottom third of the league. They’re also missing their usual starting center Alexandre Sarr, who will be replaced by Jonas Valanciunas. Valanciunas is 0-2 on the tip since Sarr went down with this recent injury. Those are all enough reasons to get behind the Timberwolves here, but they also have things going for them. They are a top 10 team in both of the big early game metrics, and should easily score first here.

The play that a lot of people are looking at here is Anthony Edwards. It makes sense – he’s already getting a bulk of the early work and Julius Randle is out with an injury. However, I’m going with a contrarian play here. I like Rudy Gobert for a couple reasons. Firstly, with Sarr out of the picture, they’ll be weaker in the middle. Also, Rudy Gobert took the first shot last game and seems to be their only threat in the middle with Randle hurt.

First Scorer Bet for February 1: Rudy Gobert (+800)

Phoenix Suns vs. Portland Trail Blazers

Tipoff – 10:00 pm EST
Moda Center – Portland, OR
Broadcast – NBA TV

Speaking of must-fade teams on the early bucket – Portland is already among those. Although the team is winning a league average number of tips, they also are only scoring first 31.3% of the time. That ineptitude in converting will come in handy here against a Suns team that now has Nick Richards on the tip. While Richards isn’t all that good at grabbing the first possession, the Suns are still scoring first regularly with him thanks to their defense and better shot selection early. Those things should carry them to the first bucket on Saturday.

While going down ballot on the Suns is a guilty pleasure of mine (hello, Ryan Dunn), this one has Kevin Durant written all over it. He’s been taking one of the first three shots of the game with regularity. We’re also fresh off a game where his counterpart, Devin Booker, got the first score. It’s never easy to repeat that in back-to-back nights, so Durant seems like the easy play here.

First Scorer Bet for February 1: Kevin Durant (+500)

 

If you’d like even more info to help make your first scorer bets for February 1, check out the NBA Gambling Podcast. They’re dropping episodes five days a week to make you the smartest guy/gal at the bar. 

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